Provincial Level Survey Provides Evidence for Remarkably Short Outpatient Visit Length in Iran

Background and Objectives: Visit length is a crucial aspect of patient-physician relationship that its inadequacy can negatively influence the treatment efficiency. Studies on visit length and the factors influencing it are limited in the developing countries. Thus, the objective of this study was to survey this variable at provincial level, and provide data on factors affecting it. Methods: A sample of 428 patients who referred to the outpatient clinics of the general hospitals of Qazvin Province (Northern Iran) was randomly selected and surveyed. Data were collected by a researcher-made checklist, and summarized using descriptive statistical methods. Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Withney’s tests were used to examine the significance of the differences. The relationship between variables was explored by multivariate regression analysis. Findings: The average visit time was found to be 4.67 min, which is significantly lower than the minimum average of 15 min approved by the Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Educations (MOHME). Pediatric physicians took significantly longer time to visit the patients, followed by general surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, internal physicians. The visit time of male patients (5.09 min) was significantly longer than that of females (4.5 min). Multivariate linear regression identified negative relationship between visit length and patient visit frequency, experience of physician, and academic membership. Conclusions: The average visit time was found to be significantly shorter in Iran than the standard (20 min) and that in the developed countries. Our study results, hence, point strongly towards the need for upstream planning for improving the length of visit time in Iran by taking appropriate measures, including motivation and training.